Norwegian salmon exports to China rose further last week

OSLO, Jan 18 (Reuters) - Norwegian salmon exports to China rose to 399 tonnes last week from 88 tonnes the previous week, and from 58 tonnes in the corresponding week last year, data from Seafood Norway showed on Thursday.

The Chinese volumes remain small however when compared to Norway’s overall salmon exports, which last week hit 17,101 tonnes.

The industry considers a recovery of salmon exports to the Chinese market as important, as output has risen this year and prices have fallen sharply.

In late 2016, Norway and China began to normalise political and trading relations following a diplomatic row over the 2010 award of the Nobel Peace Prize to a Chinese dissident.

The European Union is by far the biggest export market for Norwegian salmon, buying 78 percent of volumes last week, down from 80 percent before Christmas.

Norway’s average export price last week stood at 57.36 Norwegian crowns per kilo compared to 72.56 crowns in the same week of 2017, when total export volumes amounted to 13,239 tonnes. (Reporting by Ole Petter Skonnord, editing by Terje Solsvik)